TEHRAN (Dispatches) - The U.S. dollar has tumbled against the Iranian rial amid talks in the Austrian capital Vienna to revive an international deal on the country’s nuclear program.
The dollar fell to below 240,000 against the rial, according to currency rate websites and reports in the local media.
The price was down 0.5% against the close of trade on Monday and a low from a four-month high of above 250,000 against the rial.
Market analyst said the dollar was falling against the rial on the hopes that Iran and global powers could reach an agreement in Vienna on how to revive the JCPOA, a 2015 international deal on Iran’s nuclear activities which had almost unraveled in 2018 when a former U.S. government withdrew from it and imposed sanctions on Tehran.
The dollar traded even lower against the rial in Nima, a secondary market set up by the government to allow exporters and importers to exchange their hard currencies.
The official IRNA news agency said each dollar was selling for 230,000 rials in the Nima system on Tuesday.
The dollar had firmed against the rial in January after a slight fall following the presidential elections in U.S.
The IRNA said gold prices were also falling in Iran in line with declining exchange prices. It said benchmark bullion, known as Bahar Azadi, fell to around 100 million rials ($417), while each gram of gold sold for 10.05 million rials (nearly $42).
Stocks rose, however, as main index in the Tehran Stock Exchange rose by 2,824 points to 1.219 million, up 0.23% on Monday.